NexStore Market, Boca Raton, Fla.

Although it only has two locations and has been in operation for just four years, Florida's NexStore Market is out to redefine foodservice in the convenience store segment.

Its $20 million, 20,000-square-foot Boca Raton flagship store, which sits on five acres, offers more than 1,800

prepared food items, including chopped salads, sandwiches, sushi, Chinese food and meals that rival the many upscale restaurants in the area. NexStore also has a Miami location, which doesn't sell gas and has a less extensive menu.

Bill Knight, owner and president of NexStore and Knight Development Group, created the vision for the stores' concept and brand in 1998. Knight is well-known in the industry for developing the first combination gasoline and convenience store, called Corner Store, in Florida back in 1969. Knight sold his seven gas stations nine years ago to focus on his revolutionary idea.

Even with his focus and dedication, Knight may have underestimated how popular this concept would become. Shortly after opening, NexStore had to expand its 100-car parking lot to accommodate its growing South Florida customer base.

With business booming and expansion plans in the works, NexStore is poised to become a one-of-a-kind operation that Knight envisioned almost a decade ago.

“We are on the cutting edge of the gas and prepared food side of the convenience store business,” says Roger Bowles, who serves as both general manager and executive chef at the company.

Evidence of its formula for success is NexStore's 1,500 daily foodservice transactions. Bowles says it is the store's extensive foodservice program and the variety of options on its menu that make this operation unique. The facility features 10 food departments, including a bakeshop, café, grab 'n go, sandwiches, sushi, salads, deli, grill, Chef's Showcase, and specialty items that include a wide range of domestic and imported beer, wine and chocolates. The stores also offer full-service catering operations for both small and large groups.

The Boca site also benefits from its location in a business district that offers a bevy of fast-food and full-service restaurants, but not a lot in between. “We have patio seating for 275 people, which is filled during the week with the lunch crowd,” Bowles says.

NexStore's menu was developed with the assistance of 41 world-class chefs from across the country, including butchers, artisan bakers and other experts.

The offerings are extensive even by restaurant standards. Chefs in NexStore's on-site kitchens prepare more than 350 meals each day, including 12 soups, 16 types of fresh sushi, more than 120 bakeshop selections and 150-plus deli items. Salads, gourmet sandwiches and pizza are all made to order.

Bowles says the hallmark of the foodservice operation is the Chef's Showcase, which features 80 dishes with influences from the United States, Italy, Greece, Germany, South America, Cuba, Mexico, Asia and Indonesia. Selections include roasted vegetable quesadilla, chicken pot pie, pork schnitzel, Latin spring rolls and Italian sausage lasagna.

The recently expanded grab 'n go section offers individual meal portions made on-site each morning. Chefs do not use preservatives or fillers in the production of these dishes, which include such diverse meals as chicken Parmesan with linguine; grilled salmon with potato and vegetables; three-cheese stuffed shells; and charbroiled beefsteak with wild mushroom sauce and vegetables.

“We are focusing on and expanding our selection of individual portion and prepacked meals for our grab 'n go section,” Bowles says.

NexStore's attention to detail extends to its comprehensive beverage program, which features Seattle's Best coffee.

NexStore's on-site bakery offers made-from-scratch cakes sold in individual portions, seven-inch sizes or full sheets. The bakery offers tarts, bundt cakes, pies, coffeecakes and croissants. International dessert items include Mexican wedding cookies, English trifles, Italian cream cakes, lemon white chocolate operas and German tortes. The bakery also offers the store's wide assortment of bread for its sandwich program. Customers can choose from seven varieties daily, including sourdough, white, whole wheat, rye and ciabatta rolls.

Fresh homemade spreads, such as creamy basil, horseradish, hummus, roasted red pepper and sun-dried tomato, in addition to a variety of cottage cheese spreads, top sandwiches. These include ham, turkey and roast beef that are roasted on-site, grilled chicken breast, salami, and prosciutto.

Sandwiches can be accented with a wide selection of vegetables, in addition to a variety of cheeses such as American, Brie, provolone, Muenster, Monterey Jack and Swiss.

Signature sandwiches range in price from $6.29 to $7.49. The list includes roast beef with cheddar and horseradish cream on a ciabatta roll; a roasted vegetable wrap with alfalfa sprouts, hummus, pepper jack cheese and black olives wrapped in a sun-dried tomato tortilla; a California chicken wrap with avocado and pesto mayo in a spinach tortilla; a turkey club panini with bacon and cheddar on a whole heat hoagie roll; and an Italian hoagie with thinly sliced salami, sopressata, ham, pepperoncini and provolone on a baguette.

The grill area provides customers with a choice of hot main dishes, many of which are displayed in a hot-holding cabinet. These items include ham, homemade meatloaf, pork, prime rib and round of beef.

NexStore makes heavy use of cross-merchandising tactics in each area. For example, NexStore's artisan breads are packaged near the grill meals. By the same token, desserts and wine are displayed together in another area.

Bowles says it can be difficult for an operation like NexStore to keep up with the ever-changing food trends and ongoing menu evolutions. Yet, the company has made big strides in staying on top of the healthful food trend, providing low-fat spreads for sandwiches, turkey pastrami as an alternative to beef, and chocolates in both carb- and sugar-free varieties.

Bowles describes the kitchen setup as having back-to-back lines. A 14-foot open cooler that features an air curtain doorway and dividers to separate meals dominates this area. This system has proven indispensable to the operation. “It can be difficult keeping fresh food at the store on a constant basis, because of the extent of our foodservice operation,” Bowles says.

This walk in cooler system includes one big box for meat and seafood. There are two separate coolers, one for vegetables and the other for dairy products. The unit is linked together with the store's butcher shop, sauce room and storage room. “With this setup, employees don't have to walk out of the cooler to get what they need. This is beneficial for our HACCP program, because it keeps all of our temperatures consistent,” Bowles says.

The cooking line's main piece of equipment is a combi oven that chefs use to steam vegetables and potatoes as well as bring soup to desired temperatures.

Two tilting kettles, four tilting soup kettles, a four-range burner, a large wok system with four burners, and a grill round out the cooking line. “The hood runs on variable speeds to help conserve energy,” Bowles says.

With such a comprehensive operation, there have been some challenges along the way. “Keeping overhead and labor costs in check and controlling waste are ongoing issues,” Bowles says. “But we do a great job combating this.” He adds that the foodservice equipment helps by contributing to decreased labor costs in the kitchen.

Yet, the success of NexStore's flagship store has prompted a plan for steady growth. A third store is in the works and a franchisee program has been developed. “We are looking to add between 10 and 15 stores by the middle of next year,” Bowles says. These locations, which will not offer gas, are designed for residential, as opposed to business, sites.

With the market for prepared foods continuing to grow, and consumers seeking more options for their meals, the climate is ripe for NexStore's breakthrough in 2008. “We are definitely in expansion mode,” Bowles says.